Among seven Assembly members connected to Orange County, Laurie Davis authored the highest ratio of bills that became law this year, with Cottie Petrie-Norris not far behind.
When it came to how frequently Assembly members met with constituents via live or electronic town halls, Petrie-Norris and Sharon Quirk-Silva tied for first. Meanwhile, Davies had the best attendance for key votes in the final month of the session, while Petrie-Norris has the most informative website.
With this year’s legislative session closed, the Register took a look at what Assembly members who represent portions of Orange County accomplished in 2021.
It’s not a ranking, per se. Authoring more bills doesn’t necessarily mean better laws, for example. Also, it’s not fair to compare bills passed across party lines given that Democrats hold a supermajority in Sacramento. And there are, at times, legitimate reasons why members miss votes.
But voters should be able to expect attendance, advocacy and communication from the people they pay to represent them in Sacramento. So here’s a report card of sorts for how each local Assembly member put your taxpayer dollars to work in 2021.
Philip Chen, R-Brea, of AD-55
Chen, 43, is in his third term representing the 55th District, which includes northeast Orange County plus portions of Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties. He serves on committees overseeing finance, energy, business and insurance.
Legislation: Chen authored 25 bills this year, six of which were signed into law. One allows cannabis companies to use glass bottles for beverages and another that exempts all cooperatives from needing permits to issue shares of stock. Chen’s bill to cut down on fraudulent unemployment claims from inmates was covered by a similar bill from Petrie-Norris.
Communication: Chen held one town hall in 2021 and 14 “community coffee” events, which his team said he promotes through e-newsletters. He doesn’t provide press releases, information about his legislation, or event listings on his official website, but does use his Facebook page to regularly post about district appearances.
Helping constituents: Chen’s team worked on more than 1,500 unemployment cases, 200 DMV cases and 150 tax cases in 2021. He also regularly organizes donations of coronavirus gear to local schools and businesses and attends other community events.
Vote record: Chen missed 39% of 31 key votes tracked in September by Vote Smart. (For some context, 2% is the average record of missed votes in Congress.)
Here’s how Chen voted on three high-profile bills:
-Missed the vote on Senate Bill 9, which will let Californians build up to four housing units on current single-family lots
– No on Senate Bill 2, which creates a process that can strip law enforcement officers of their badges if they’re convicted of crimes or some forms of misconduct
– Missed the vote on Assembly Bill 101, which requires all high school students to take an ethnic studies course
Personal highlight: Chen touts having helped allocate $1 million in state funds to Cal State Fullerton for a pedestrian bridge across Nutwood Avenue, and $300,000 for the Brea Boys and Girls club.
Sharon Quirk-Silva, D-Fullerton, of AD-65
Quirk-Silva, 59, is in her fourth non-consecutive term representing Assembly District 65, which stretches across north central Orange County. She serves on committees overseeing arts, communication, education, governmental organization and housing.
Legislation: Quirk-Silva authored 26 bills and three resolutions this year. Seven bills and three resolutions were fully approved. That includes AB 362, which requires local governments to inspect homeless shelters and penalize shelters that don’t meet minimum safety standards, and AB 638, which expands prevention strategies covered by the Mental Health Services Fund to also address substance abuse.
Communication: The Assemblywoman held 15 town halls in 2021 and 32 smaller gatherings with constituents. Her website and social media accounts provide legislative updates, press releases, event listings and other resources.
Helping constituents: Quirk-Silva’s office has helped constituents with more than 1,395 cases. (No breakdown of that case work was provided.) Her office also regularly hosts events such as blood drives and food giveaways.
Voting record: Quirk-Silva missed 10% of 31 key votes tracked by Vote Smart in September, which her camp described as excused absences. Here’s how she voted on three high-profile bills this year (see details of bills above):
– Yes on SB 9
– Missed vote on SB 2
– Yes on AB 101
Personal highlight: As chair of the arts committee, Quirk-Silva touts the role she played in securing grants to help businesses in the arts, entertainment and hospitality industries keep going through the pandemic.
Steven Choi, R-Irvine, of AD-68
Choi, 77, is in his third term representing Assembly District 68, which runs from Villa Park to Lake Forest. He serves on committees overseeing higher education, arts, banking, human services and legislative ethics.
Legislation: Choi authored 17 bills and seven resolutions this year. Four bills and all seven resolutions got final approval. That includes AB 251, which aims to strengthen oversight in the UC Admissions process, and AB 1002, which will help veterans transfer equivalent course credit from their military schooling and work to California universities.
Communication: While Choi didn’t host any traditional town halls, he had several virtual community meetings, in-person “community coffees” and an office Open House. His website and social media accounts also provide legislative updates, press releases, event listings and other resources.
Helping constituents: Choi’s office helped AD-68 residents with hundreds of cases related to unemployment and rental assistance this year. They’ve also helped with roughly 300 cases involving veterans, social services and the DMV. And they’ve worked on dozens of tax cases, plus hundreds more miscellaneous inquiries.
Voting record: Choi missed 39% or 12 out of 31 key votes tracked in September by Vote Smart. Here’s how Choi voted on three high-profile bills this year (see details of bills above):
– Missed vote on SB 9
– No on SB 2
– Missed vote on AB 101
Personal highlight: Choi wrote a resolution establishing Kimchi Day in California every year on Nov. 22, signifying the 11 ingredients and 22 health benefits of Kimchi.
Tom Daly, D-Anaheim, of AD-69
Daly, 67, is in his fifth term representing Assembly District 69, which includes parts of Anaheim, Santa Ana, Garden Grove and Orange. He serves on committees overseeing insurance, governmental organization, transportation and veterans affairs.
Legislation: Daly authored 12 bills this year. Two were signed into law, including AB 781, which gives Orange County money to do flood control work in Westminster, and AB 1499, which gives transportation agencies 10 more years to use design-build construction plans for projects. Daly’s bills dealing with road maintence, distance learning and housing all passed the legislature but were vetoed by Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Communication: Daly did not hold any town halls this year. His website and social media accounts do provide legislative updates, press releases, event listings and many other resources.
Helping constituents: Daly’s office resolved hundreds of cases related to the DMV and to state stimulus payments. Staff also handled more than 3,000 cases related to unemployment benefits, with many of those cases resolved.
Vote record: Daly missed 35% or 11 out of 31 key votes tracked in September by Vote Smart. Here’s how he voted on three high-profile bills this year (see details of bills above):
– No on SB 9
– Yes on SB 2
– Yes on AB 101
Personal highlight: Daly also touts securing $14 million in state budget funds for the Santa Ana River Conservancy Program and $150 million to increase the capacity of food banks.
Janet Nguyen, R-Fountain Valley, of AD-72
Nguyen, 45, is in her first term representing Assembly District 72, which covers northwestern Orange County south to Huntington Beach. She serves on committees overseeing revenue, banking, water and transportation.
Legislation: Nguyen authored 17 bills and seven resolutions this year. While most of the resolutions passed, none of her bills were signed into law. But Nguyen coauthored AB 80, which was signed into law to let eligible businesses deduct expenses paid for using federal coronavirus relief funds. She also says the intent of her AB 1336, to establish a hate crime task force, was accomplished when AB 57 passed.
Communication: Nguyen didn’t hold any town halls this year, but her office said she hosted or attended more than 50 constituent events. She doesn’t regularly provide any press releases, information about her legislation or event listings on her official website, but does post about district appearances on social media.
Helping constituents: Nguyen’s office worked on more than 2,000 unemployment cases, about 100 tax cases and a number of rental protection cases this year.
Vote record: Nguyen missed 42% or 13 out of 31 key votes tracked in September by Vote Smart — the highest among local Assembly members. She was out in early September after testing positive for COVID-19 despite being vaccinated. Here’s how she voted on three high-profile bills this year (see details of bills above):
– Missed vote on SB 9
– No on SB 2
– Missed vote on AB 101
Personal highlight: Nguyen has been heavily involved in response to the Oct. 1 oil spill off Huntington Beach, making requests for state and federal resources and now holding a seat now on the Orange County Oil Spill Committee.
Laurie Davies, R-Laguna Niguel, of AD-72
Davis, 59, is in her first term representing Assembly District 73, which covers southern Orange County. She serves on committees overseeing human services, appropriations, communications, government organization, judiciary and transportation.
Legislation: Davies authored 14 bills and one resolution this year. Six bills and her resolution were signed into law, including AB 381, which requires all drug treatment centers to have opioid overdose medication onsite at all times, and AB 419, which protects personal information about victims and witnesses of crimes so they feel comfortable cooperating in investigations.
Communication: Davies this year held one town hall focused on drug prevention, a workshop on teen mental health and a forum on public safety. Her website and social media accounts provide legislative updates, press releases and some other resources.
Helping constituents: Davies’ office closed 461 unemployment cases, held 246 legislative meetings, attended more than 75 ribbon cuttings, worked on more than 80 cases with other state offices and attended other community events.
Vote record: Davies was the only local member who didn’t miss any of the 31 key votes tracked in September by Vote Smart. Here’s how she voted on three high-profile bills this year (see details of bills above):
– No on SB 9
– No on SB 2
– No on AB 101
Personal highlight: Davies was one of just three Republicans to co-author bipartisan legislation, still in the works, to expand access to telehealth services for Medi-Cal recipients.
Cottie Petrie-Norris, D-Laguna Beach, of AD-74
Petrie-Norris, 46, is in her second term representing Assembly District 74, which stretches along the coast from Huntington Beach to Laguna Beach and includes most of Irvine. She serves on committees overseeing accountability, banking, jobs, revenue and veterans.
Legislation: Petrie-Norris authored 20 bills and two resolutions this year. Seven bills were signed into law, including AB 110 to prevent fraud in unemployment benefits, and AB 1057, to close a loophole in rules on ghost guns. She also was principal coauthor of SB 74, which stalled but aimed to invest $2.6 billion into grants for small businesses and nonprofit organizations struggling during the pandemic.
Communication: She held 15 town halls this year, covering topics from vaccines to self defense to housing. Her website and social media accounts provide legislative updates, press releases, event listings and many other resources.
Helping constituents: Petrie-Norris’ office assisted with 1,076 unemployment cases, six tax cases, seven DMV cases and 2,333 other inquiries from residents.
Vote record: The Assemblywoman missed 13% or four of 31 key votes tracked in September by Vote Smart. Here’s how she voted on three high-profile bills this year (see details of bills above):
– No on SB 9
– Missed vote on SB 2
– Yes on AB 101
Personal highlight: Petrie-Norris also touts securing state budget funds such as $14.3 million to support fighting wildfires in Orange County, $18.8 million for the Orange Coast Community College Chemistry Building, $21 million for historic cottage rehabilitation at Crystal Cove State Park and $8 million for preservation of Banning Ranch.